The Shadow Fox Tale
by skybluebutterfly
Summary: The Tale of the Shadow Fox, weeping in the silent night. Okay, so it wasn't exactly a summary. Oh well.
1. Prologue: Kurama's Mysterious Relation

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the plot and my OC.  
  
Warnings: Before you start reading it, I'll tell you that I don't update very often, so there might be a long wait before the next chapter comes out. Also, I 'm telling you right now, this is a YAOI fic. Don't know what it means then don't read. I'll accept no flames on this because it is a YAOI fic from people who don't even read the warnings. I have better things to do with my time, thank you very much.  
  
Moving on.  
  
This is kind of short, but since it's only the prologue I guess it's okay. Right? Anyways, C&C are welcome! Review!  
  
A dark figure within a castle-like structure walked down the halls of the dungeons slowly, his light footsteps echoing loudly down the corridor. Suddenly, he stopped in front of one of the heavily guarded cells and turned towards it, nodding to the guards on duty who saluted and opened the cell door for him, the figure walking in.  
  
Inside was another figure, except unlike the first one, this one was warded, chained and dressed in rags, the figure's long silver hair curtained his face though if one searched hard enough, one could barely make out two silver orbs beneath the dirty silver mane.  
  
"How are you doing, my dear?" the voice was low and masculine, "I hope my guards treated you well?"  
  
The chained figure slowly raised his head, showing a perfectly angelic face, definitely female. If it weren't for the sheer hatred on her features, you could easily have mistaken her for an angel. "Oh don't worry about me. They treated me fine," her voice was feminine and sweet, but stern. "How are you?"  
  
"I'm so glad you asked; I've never been better. I've just arranged a huge tournament which will be held in my new arena next month. There are all kinds of youkais coming: youkais wielding all sorts of tricks, weapons and elements. And of course, youkos."  
  
Shock crossed her features in a millisecond but it left just as quickly as it came. However, the other figure did not miss the look. "Why are you telling me this? It's not like I'm going to compete or even see the tournament anyways."  
  
His lips curved upwards, "But you are going to see and compete in my little tournament, my dear, unless of course, you want to stay in this dirty cell of yours forever," His smile deepened, "And do you know who else is fighting?"  
  
She snorted. "How am I supposed to know; you know I'm no empath. Besides, what makes you think I'm going to compete? For you, no less."  
  
One word explained it all. "Kurama."  
  
She gasped.  
  
This is my second fic, and I had a huge, I mean HUGE, debate on weather I should post it or no. People in MM.org seemed to like it, so here it is. 


	2. Chapter One: The Tournament

Yeah~ Getting to the real chapters~ Whoo~ But I still have a looong way to go~ I know this chapter is short, but it's just the beginning.... It'll get longer..... I think.....  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own YYH; anyone who's a *little* intelligent can figure *that* out. Don't sue; I don't have anything but the plot.  
  
Anyways, C&C are welcome~^^~ Arigatou~  
  
Chapter One: The Tournament  
  
Kurama sat beside a rosebush, which he grew for Yukina not so long ago, reading, when Yusuke and Kuwabara walked toward him, waving and calling his name. His eyes left the pages of the book and settled on their faces instead, and he, too, waved and greeted them, "Yusuke, Kuwabara, what are you doing here? I thought the girls are *inside* the temple."  
  
"Well, they started to talk `Girl Talk' and we weren't interested. Besides, Hiei looked as if he was gonna cut off Kuwabara's head if he drooled over Yukina for one more second, so I dragged him out."  
  
Kurama smiled weakly, "Why am I not surprised."  
  
"I, Kazuma `The Man' Kuwabara, am not scared of that little shrimp-"  
  
"Who are you calling a shrimp? Nigen." The black shadow appeared next to Kurama said in his usual  
  
'If-It-Weren't-For-Yukina-And-Kurama-I-Wouldn't-Even-Be-Here-Speaking-Of- Which-Stay-Away-From-My-Sister' tone, accompanied by a glare that had the word "Death" written all over it. "And since when did you actually get dressed by yourself?"  
  
"How dare you mock my get-dress skills?! (does that count as a skill? ^^;) You little shrimp, I, The Great Kazuma Kuwabara, will make you pay for what you said! Wahahahaha!!!" With that, the fight of Kuwa against Hiei started again. Yusuke and Kurama sweat dropped, but they made no movement to stop them; they kind of enjoyed watching the sight of Kuwabara being chased by Hiei's pet dragon, the Ensatsu Kokuryuha.  
  
But the good times (or in this case, good shows) never last too long, for the fight had only been no more than five minutes when Yukina ran in small steps into the garden. "Kazuma-san! Kurama-san! Yusuke-san! Hiei-san! Botan- chan is here! She said it's important!" Kuwabara and Hiei stopped fighting immediately. Yusuke and Kurama turned their attention to the ice maiden, too, only they had a little disappointment in their eyes.  
  
"Is there something wrong, Yukina-san?" Kurama asked.  
  
"It better not be another one of Koenma's dumb missions," Yusuke commented, still unhappy about the mission they went on last week, not to mention missing the chance of seeing Kuwabara being fried to extra crispy.  
  
"Yukina-san!" Kuwaabara came running for Yukina, taking both of her small hands into his bigger ones, his tone suddenly soft and gentle, "Is there something that bothered you? Whoever or whatever it is, I'll take care of it for you, Yukna-san."  
  
Yukina blushed while Hiei snorted, "Kazuma-san, you worry too much, it does not concern me, the event concerns you."  
  
"And you came and..."  
  
Kurama didn't hear the rest of the conversation back to the temple, he was too busy watching Hiei scowling, and he couldn't help but smile; Hiei was so *cute* when he's irritated.  
  
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"About time you guys showed up," From the look on Botan's face, she had already lost her temper before the group finally got from the garden to the guest room of the temple ten minutes later. The truth is: they would never have wasted eight out of the ten minutes they had if it weren't for the fact that they were trying to prevent a certain harassed-looking fire demon from cutting a half-dreaming Kuwabara's head off right there and then when Yukina gave the orange-haired nigen a peck on the cheek.  
  
"Here's the message from Koenma-sama." Botan threw a DVD to Yusuke none too gently, obviously still mad at them for being late. Yusuke just ignored the mad ferry-girl and put the DVD into the DVD player and pressed the "Play" button.  
  
A young godling appeared on the TV screen. He raised his right hand in greeting, "Greetings, my Tanteis, how is your vacation?"  
  
"You mean `was,'" Yusuke corrected in a `You-Better-Not-Give-Us-Another- Mission-Or-I-Will-Personally-Kill-You-Even- You're-A-God' tone, "It was fine until *you* appeared on that stupid TV screen."  
  
"Well, the vacation is over, so stop your whining, Yusuke." Koenma replied simply to the scowling teenager. "You have been invited to attend another Martial Arts tournament next month. The Shadow Tournament, I believe is what it is called. Hosted by Yomi." The whole team froze at the spoken name. "But I don't think he has any `evil plan' up his sleeve this time, that is if you don't count the fact that if you don't enter while invited they'll kill all your relations."  
  
"That's just like the Ankoku Bujusukai!" Kuwabara whined; he had just recovered from the trance of seeing Yukina, "Man, I hated that stupid tournament. They kept cheating."  
  
"Hn. So you *do* say something correct once in a while. I'm impressed, nigen." (You can go ahead and take a wild guess at who said this.)  
  
"You shrimp! Just wait till I get my hands on you-" But before he could insult Hiei any further, Yusuke clamped his hand over the orange-head's mouth and pulled him away from the already irritated demon as far as possible while still in the room. He whispered a few words into the other's ear before the latter stopped his attempts to strangle the half-Koorime and settled down. Hiei snorted. Kurama involuntarily smiled again.  
  
"I don't think you guys will have much of a problem with the tournament, since you did so well with the Ankoku Bujusukai and all." The team once again turned their attention to the TV screen; they had completely forgotten the Prince of Death's presence. "However, it's held in the Maikai, and I don't think some of you can handle yourselves properly while staying there," he paused, staring at the two youkais , who stared back at him with their best "innocent" looks. The Jr. God signed, then went on, "I know I'm gonna regret this... But I *have* to let you go... Kurama, Hiei," he looked at the two "innocent-looking" demons straight into the eyes, "I want you to promise that you will not cause any trouble while you're in the Maikai." They nodded, still looking "innocent." "And no incidents or accidents either," he added.  
  
"What?! Are you saying that you don't trust us?!" the nigen-youko asked in a high pitch voice, the expression was supposed to look hurt; unfortunately, the mischievous glint in the green-sparkling-gold orbs ruined the effect.  
  
The toddler god signed again, louder this time, "I want your word." Koenma knew very well that `word' meant nothing to most youkis, but *these* two are especially proud creatures. So if he had their word, maybe, just maybe, he will be able to sleep at night without having nightmares of... well, better not think about it. Now, if he can only make himself believe that as well, everything will be fine. Hopefully.  
  
The demons answered with their "innocent-looking" faces still on, "You have our word." They said solemnly, but somehow Koenma just couldn't bring himself to believe them, no matter how hard he tried. Maybe it has something to do with Kurama's gold-flashing eyes and Hiei's demonic smirk. With another sign, the toddler god told them the exact location and date of the tournament, all the while keeping an eye on the demonic couple.  
  
"Botan will show you the portal when it's time. And remember," he stole yet another look at *those two*, (I think you'll be able to identify `*those two*' by now...) "I'll be watching..." Then the image of the toddler disappeared as the screen was replaced by darkness.  
  
The Tanteis glanced at each other and smiled, apparently *wanted* to go on a mission for once. But no one was as happy Kurama, he had a demonic smile on his angelic features (Uh oh, this is bad...) and kept whispering something under his breath, nobody heard him except Hiei, who smirked and said quietly to the kitsune, "We should try your third idea, it sounds entertaining. "  
  
The red head turned to his lover and silently mouthed `hentai' before starting to whisper under his breath again. But oh yes...he should *definitely* try the third idea that his itooshi youkai approved so much...  
  
(Smirk) You like the ending to the chapter? I, personally, thought it was cute...in a strange, weird, twisted sort of way...  
  
Review! 


	3. Chapter Two: Preparations

Skybluebutterfly: I am so happy that people actually read my stuff!!! Yay~[starts dancing]  
  
Kurama: [sweatdrop] just a reminder, Sky, we have a fic to do.  
  
Skybluebutterfly: [looks up from her `over-joyness'] Oh, right. Why don't you do it?  
  
Kurama: O_O  
  
Skybluebutterfly: What?  
  
Kurama: I'm not the author, you know.  
  
Skybluebutterfly: [suddenly realizes] I knew that...  
  
Kurama: [smirk]  
  
Skybluebutterfly: Fine, then you do the disclaimer.  
  
Kurama: [shrugs] Okay. Skybluebutterfly does not own Yu Yu Hakusho. Only the plot. And please review. [Suddenly grows quiet] Or she'll bug me until *I* review for her.  
  
Skybluebutterfly: [from far away] I heard that...  
  
Kurama: [nervous laugh]  
  
Chapter Two: Preparations  
  
"You wouldn't dare." It was meant to be more of an observation than wishful talking, but her eyes betrayed her; they were filled with pain, hopelessness... and tears.  
  
"I can, I would and I will, Kiko." The six-eared goat smiled. "Unless you fight for me."  
  
"But if you want me win, what happens when I fight him? He won't fight me once he sees me in my youko form," she protested, "What would you do then?! Huh?!"  
  
His smile only deepened as his lips curved upwards even more, "Which is why he *won't* see you in your youko form."  
  
"But he knows all of my other forms too!"  
  
"So?"  
  
"*So*, he will be able to recognize me anyways! What do you want me to do? Wear a mask?!"  
  
Yomi couldn't help but chuckle softly, "You've read my mind."  
  
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Kurama was doing his nigen schoolwork while Hiei was sitting on the windowsill, one leg bent and the other dangling in midair. He was polishing his katana with a piece of cloth that was given to him earlier by Kurama. As far as he knew, the nigens call the piece of cloth a "han-er-cheef."  
  
`Hn. Stupid nigen cloth names,' he thought to himself. He look at the kitsune, after making sure no one was looking at him; Hiei sniffed the the piece of cloth and smiled.  
  
~Flash Back~  
  
Hiei was sitting on his favorite tree branch, polishing his katana with a piece of cloth that he had torn off his top. The kitsune saw it.  
  
"Hiei, you can't always polish your katana with pieces of your clothes, soon you will end up with nothing to wear, not that I would complain..." The redhead realized what had he just said and blushed. Suddenly remembering something, Kurama climbed the tree Hiei was sitting in and sat next to him on the branch, he pulled out a piece of clean cloth from his jeans pocket, then handed it to the other. "It's called a handkerchief, Hiei. Use this instead. You can keep it for later, too."  
  
Hiei snorted but accepted the offering. The youko smiled and jumped down the tree. He waved to the fire demon before leaving. "Ja, ne!"  
  
Hiei snorted again; he only accepted it because he didn't want to upset his fox and... well, he kind of... '*liked*' the piece of cloth, it had Kurama's sweet scent of roses on it. He sniffed it, then signed happily. He put the handkerchief into his pocket and still continued to use his clothes to polish his katana. He didn't want to get the handkerchief dirty.  
  
It was too precious.  
  
~End Flash Back~  
  
`Hn. Baka Kitsune, always being so considerate.' He thought both bitter and sweetly at the same time. Not that he was complaining or anything, it's just that the Kitsune seemed to be so perfect and he... Quickly pushing away the thought, Hiei returned to polish his already shining katana.  
  
"Are you gonna do anything other than polishing that katana of yours tonight? If I didn't know any better, I would say you want to pay more attention to it than me..." There was a hint of fake hurt, a little teasing and something else he couldn't identify.  
  
`Well, two can play at that game,' he thought wryly. Turning to the sensual kitsune who was sitting on his bed in his pajamas, the small youkai spoke, a hint of challenge in his tone, "Well, since you think that way, I guess you'll just have to do something to `*get*' my attention."  
  
The redhead's eyes lit up in mischief, smiling wickedly, he walked up to the fire youkai, in the most seductive way he could manage in Suuichi's body, he picked up the smaller demon easily and dumped him on the bed. Hiei may have lots of lean muscles on his body, but he was very light. Then the youko sat on top of the other's thighs, looking into the crimson red orbs. Hiei smirked. "One track mind kitsune," he accused. And he was rewarded by a wicked smile on his lover's face.  
  
Deciding that he couldn't wait any longer, Kurama bent down and claimed his lover's mouth in a passionate kiss while his hands went to work: pulling off the white scarf, the black cloak, the shirt, the belts, the pants...  
  
Outside the bedroom room, Shiori listened quietly, a small smile graced her facial features, "My Suuichi is really grown up, ne?" She stepped away from the door as quietly as possible, so not to disturb the couple. She was still carrying the tray of hot chocolate and marshmallows, which she originally prepared for her son and his friend, but she guess that it was no longer necessary. Good thing she didn't just open the door like she sometimes did. "Now, what should I do with these hot chocolate?" She wondered to herself as she walked down the hallway to the kitchen.  
  
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"What the hell do you take me for? Your bed slave?! There is no way in the three worlds that I'm gonna wear that piece of... of towel! Not to mention in public!" Kiko turned away from Yomi, arms folded across her chest, glaring at the tip of her boots.  
  
Yomi just chuckled. "Language, Kiko. Of course, if you *want* to be my slave, I wouldn't object." He extended a hand towards the girl, but she jumped out of his reach and glared daggers, no *molten fireballs*, at him.  
  
"Not even in your dreams, you six-eared old goat. And there is NO WAY I'm wearing that... that *thing*." She made disgusted a face, pointing at the tunic in Yomi's arms.  
  
"But this is made of best kind of silk there is. Do you know how much I paid for this min[1] tunic?"  
  
She snorted. "You didn't pay a bloody copper coin[2] for the silk; they were made of *me*!" she sounded hurt, "I may not be as smart as Kurama, but I'm no fool that can be toyed with. Especially not like this!"  
  
Yomi chuckled and threw up his arms in defeat, "Fine. You win. I'll tell them to make an outfit that *you* approve, how does that sound, Kiko?" `She reminds me of him so much,' Yomi thought to himself.  
  
Kiko looked at him as if considering something, one delicate eyebrow raised. Yomi simply smiled. "What's in it for you, old goat?"  
  
He pretended to be surprised.  
  
"What do you mean?" `Oh yes, she *definitely* reminds me of him.'  
  
"Don't play dumb, old goat, what's in it for you?" She asked, voice cold and emotionless.  
  
"Go win me a tournament," Yomi replied, tone a little too calm for Kiko's likings.  
  
Kiko surveyed him for a moment before speaking, "I'm sure there's more to it, but I'm sick of arguing with you. Get out. I'll see you at dinner, old goat."  
  
Yomi smirked and walked out of the room like he was told, while his steps echoed down the hallway, his thoughts echoed in his mind. 'They're so much alike: the appearance, the voice, the suspicions toward others, the attitude, the personality, the grace. The everything. But they are youkos... and youkos... are always both in and out of one's reach... Well, better not think about it, I've got other things to worry about.' He pushed away the thoughts and didn't think about them anymore until dinner when she came down to dinner, looking fantastic.  
  
[1] Don't bother look that up the dictionary. Just a word I made up for the fic. Our beloved kitsune will explain what it is in the next chapter.  
  
[2] My system is simple. In Maikai, they use coins: Gold ones worth the most; silvers worth second; copper last.  
  
Did you like it? Hate it? Whatever you think, please review!!  
  
Skybluebutterfly 


	4. Chapter Three: Team Shadow Fox

Disclaimer: Look at the last chapter. Too lazy to type it. Don't sue.  
  
Chapter Three: Team Shadow Fox  
  
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Looking at the piece of garment in front of her, she smiled and nodded approvingly at the youkai known as the 'dressmaker' in the Nigenkai. "I like it," Kiko stated, "Can you make some more of the same style? I'm afraid I'll tear this one in the tournament."  
  
"Anything for you, Kiko-sama," the youkai replied submissively.  
  
"How many times have I told you to call me 'Kiko?' Drop the 'sama' crap, will you? You're making me uncomfortable."  
  
"But..." The youkai hesitated, he was considering if he should tell her that Yomi made him... But if Yomi found out... He would better remain quiet.  
  
"Yomi made you, didn't he?" The youkai's head snapped up, eyes wide, he wondered at how she knew that. She gave him a reassuring smile, and answered the unspoken question, "I have my sources."  
  
Still amazed, the 'dressmaker' nodded and excused himself politely but he didn't use the 'sama' form to address her this time. And he could tell that pleased her. Good. He already had enough to do as it is; those min tunics were very hard to make.  
  
Inside the chamber, the youko was speaking to herself, "I think I'll wear this to dinner this evening. It's about time Yomi learn what's *real* fashion, anyways. But first thing's first, I think I'm gonna take a looonng bath."  
  
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For the next month, the Urmeshi team trained every day. Just because they did well in Ankoku Bujutsukai didn't mean that they were invincible. Besides, they didn't trust Koenma. So when he said they're going to do just fine; they had to train extra hard. Which they did. Finally, there's only three days until their first match...  
  
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"Ouch, my butt still hurts so bad... Wait until I get my hands on that stupid ferry-girl when we get back..." Yusuke complained as he rubbed his sore bottom while traveling along with his companions.  
  
"Shut up, Urmeshi, you're not the only one who fell, okay?" Kuwabara groaned irritably, but instead of rubbing his bottom, his was rubbing his face.  
  
None of the Tanteis looked too pleased. Not that you could blame them: The portal that Botan had opened for them was five feet off the ground, so when they walked through... well, you get the picture. Simply put, it was not a pretty sight.  
  
"I think we're here," Kurama said, pointing at the hotel not too far away from them.  
  
"Finally! I thought we were lost!" Kuwabara exclaimed, very relieved.  
  
"None of *us* thought we were lost, baka nigen." Hiei spoke for the first time since they crossed the portal. He had changed his position at the last second when they were falling and was the only one that landed on his feet, however, it all happened too fast and unexpected, so he didn't have time to bend his knees. Now both his legs hurt like hell. And his mood was visibly affected by it.  
  
Though their mood did improved a little better once they've reached their room. Since they were competing, their room had a medium-sized living room, two restrooms and two cozy-looking bedrooms; guess they'll have to share. Kurama liked the arrangements very much: finally he would be able to carry out his 'third idea...'(remember chapter one?) Oh no, he would *not* miss this chance.  
  
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"Can you sense it? He's here."  
  
"Baka. *Of course* I can sense him, in fact, I can *smell* him too. But..."  
  
"But...?"  
  
"He has someone else's scent on him. Knowing him, I wouldn't be surprised if he's just done it this morning." (Double meaning in that sentence...)  
  
He shrugged, "I guess you're right. That fox really needs to restrain himself a little more."  
  
"Hn. Talk about *huge* understatements. But he's so damn good, and practically *everybody* would fall for him just like that," she snapped her fingers, "That damn kitsune."  
  
"I thought you love him."  
  
"I *do*!" she raised her voice so loud that she was sure the people downstairs could hear her as clear as bells.  
  
Yomi "looked" at her and smiled, "It's such a shame."  
  
"What's a shame?"  
  
"Nothing."  
  
Kiko "hmphed" then sat up walked to the door, stopping at it, she turned to the blind Maikai lord, "You know that I HATE you, right old goat?" Smiling he nodded. Then she walked out of his room, closing the door gently behind her.  
  
After making sure that she was really out of earshot, he whispered ever so quietly to the air around him, "I really like you, Kiko. I like you so much that.... I... I think I love you..." A tear ran down his pale cheek and dropped.  
  
Like his heart.  
  
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"The fight was boring," Yusuke concluded. Which was what the rest of the Urmeshi team thought of. They've, or rather, *Kuwabara* had defeated the other team in ten minutes; the guy was now happy beyond measures, though Hiei begged to differ, like he always did.  
  
"I thought the tournament was supposed to be 'challenging.' But all we ended up doing was wasting our precious time on stupid low-classed youkais."  
  
"But, Yusuke, this is only the fifth round, we still have... Let me see," Kurama ran his eyes over the schedule he had in his hands, "... Five... Ten... Sixteen more rounds to go before we can fight in the finals."  
  
"Well," Kuwabara said in a matter-of-fact tone, "At the rate *this* is going, I highly doubt even the finals are going to be tough."  
  
"Don't count on it, nigen."  
  
"Well, how do *you* know, Shrimp?"  
  
Hiei said no more but pointed at the TV screen that was reporting the match live from the stadium. On the screen were four figures in capes. Four silver capes. Kurama immediately realized what the material was, "They're min capes!" he gasped. Hiei's almond eyes widened at the statement.  
  
"What's that?" Yusuke asked, very confused.  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Hiei, what do you think? They made those out of me!" Nigen-youko nearly screamed, then he lowered his voice into a whisper, "Sorry, koi, I shouldn't have yelled at you." Hiei flashed him a quick "You're-Forgiven- Smile" that only the kitsune managed to catch.  
  
"Oi, Kurama, what the hell is 'min?'"  
  
"Min is a type of fabric, usually used to make clothing, known for its softness that even silk can't compare. It's very expensive and rare, so just a little piece of it can be easily sold for thousands in the market. Why? Because min is made of pure silver youko hair, that's why it's silver and no one dares dye it in to other colors, afraid that they would ruin the garments. Min is very hard to make, think about it: how do you make hair into garments? It requires a huge amount of skill and experience. It's also hard to make min into clothing. Think of it as the silver youkos' version of tear gems. What I don't get is how they managed to get enough min to make long capes for FOUR people."  
  
"They must be rich," Yusuke said in awe.  
  
"Or," Hiei commented, "They have a silver youko on their team."  
  
"Shhh, you guys," Kuwabara hushed everyone, "It's starting."  
  
The screen showed one of the caped figures jumped up to the arena, at the bottom of the screen showed the figure's name: Shuenn. Shuenn gently took off his cape and handed it to one of his teammates with a charming smile, but became completely emotionless once turned back to his opponent.  
  
The guy was handsome all right. He had long flowing night-sky blue hair, grass-colored eyes, high cheekbones, and a slender yet well-toned frame. There were mobs of both male and female youkai screaming his name; some of them actually got a huge sign that said: ?We LOVE Shadow Fox and Shuenn!!? Kuwabara was green with envy, Hiei snorted. However, Shuenn paid no mind to any of the screaming youkais, although he did kept glancing back at his teammate that was carrying his cloak, and Kurama swore he saw Shuenn blushed each time he glanced back.  
  
As soon as the announcer declared the fight started, Shuenn disappeared only to appear at his opponent's back and sent a kick to the unfortunate youkai's ribs. The youkai flew across the stadium and landed on some of the audience; he was not moving.  
  
"He defeated a B+ class just like that," Yusuke's jaw dropped. The rest of the round went pretty much the same; Shuenn beat the other three in the same way, none of the matches was more than two seconds. He *definitely* didn't waste time.  
  
When he walked back to join his teammates, the same figure that accepted his cape handed it back to him without a word, Shuenn's face turned beat red, he mumbled softly, about his gratitude no doubt. Then the figure that handed him his cape raised his hand to pat Shuenn's head, the cape slipped off the arm and showed perfectly flawless creamy skin. The hand shrank back under the cape as the caped figure turned toward the exit, leading the other three out of the stadium.  
  
"I'll bet he's their leader, that one that patted Shuenn on the head." Yusuke observed.  
  
"Shuenn acted like a puppy around him," Kuwabara exclaimed, "He must be very powerful."  
  
"I think there's more to it than that," Kurama said while searching though the papers in his hands, "Did you see that Shuenn kept glancing back at him as if he was scared that his leader would disappear any minute? And the way he always blushes when his leader looks at him? Personally, I think Shuenn has a crush on his boss."  
  
"Are you serious?!" The kitsune nodded.  
  
"They're the team called 'Shadow Fox,'" Kurama stated, eyes now on the page of the competing teams' names and their members, "There's another one named 'Shyang,' one named 'Yih.' And their leader... that's weird..."  
  
"What's weird?" Kuwabara asked anxiously. The last thing he wanted was being publicly defeated and humiliated by someone he had no clue about.  
  
"They didn't list their leader's name on here... It just says 'Unavailable.'" Kurama frowned. Hiei snatched the piece of paper out of the fox's hands and read it for himself: The fox was right; there is no name for their leader!  
  
"Do you believe me now, Koi?" the redhead whispered in his ear as he took the list gently out of the smaller youkai's hands.  
  
"Hn."  
  
Yusuke put his hands behind his head, a smile on his lips, "Guess the tournament won't be *too* boring after all, ne?"  
  
"Guess not."  
  
~Chapter Three Ends~  
  
P.S. I know that Yomi is really OOC in the fic. The truth is, I've never got far enough in the series to understand Yomi's character, or seen him for that matter. I only knew of him from people talking on the net. Gomen. And, yes. It was very cheesy, I know.  
  
P.P.S. In case you're wondering, the names 'Shuenn,' 'Yih,' and 'Shyang' DO have meanings. However, they were translated from Chinese, not Japanese; partly because I don't speak Japanese. 'Shuenn' means to follow and submit; kind of like his character around his leader don't you think? 'Yih' was the name of a legendary archer. And last but not least, 'Shyang' means to soar, which is one of his ability. (I'm a spoiler, am I ^^;)  
  
P.P.P.S. I have nothing against Kuwabara or anything, he's just not my favoriate, that's all. ^-^  
  
More explanations and weird rumbling later. C&C are welcome ^ ^ And please review!! THANK YOU!! 


	5. Chapter Four: The Encounter

Hey everyone, it's me again!  
  
Fine, ignore me. Anyways, I'm so happy that I got reviews. Thanks for those who reviewed!  
  
C&C are welcome and don't forget to review!!  
  
Chapter Four: The Encounter  
  
"Another success!" Yusuke said as he high-fived Kuwabara, "Two more rounds before we can fight in the finals and get out of this wormhole."  
  
"Hn. Just won a few matches and they already act as if they were invincible".  
  
The fox demon smirked as he affectionately put an arm around the little koorime's shoulders. Hiei stiffened but didn't pull away. 'Guess he's still not used to the public display of affection. Oh well.' "Ne, koi?"  
  
Hiei casted a questioned look at his friend, "Nani?"  
  
"Do you want to go shopping?"  
  
Hiei lifted an eyebrow, "Shopping?"  
  
"Yes. Shopping."  
  
The fire demon looked at the youko-nigen, the eyebrow still rose, "Shopping shopping?"  
  
Kurama nodded and whispered to the other's ear, "You know, Idea # 4?" All of a sudden that everything made sense to the smaller youkai, his eyes sparkled mischief and nodded as his koibito pulled him away from the other two when they saw four figures coming their way from the opposite end of the dim-lighted hallway.  
  
The Shadow Fox team.  
  
In their min capes with the hoods pulled up, as always. The tanteis stopped dead in their tracks, staring at the four figures not too pleasantly. The latter stopped in front of them. One figure lowered his hood, it was Shuenn.  
  
"What an unpleasant surprise," Yusuke remarked.  
  
"We meet at last," Shuenn said, completely ignoring Yusuke's comment. He had a deep and rich voice though the tone was emotionless, "Allow me to introduce ourselves, I am Shuenn," he gestured the figure to his left, "This is Shyang," he gestured the figure to his far right. "That's Yih, and this," he said, turning to the caped figure that was half-a-step behind the other three, "Is Ying." Kurama could have sworn Shuenn's face reddened at the sound of Ying's name, the tone seemed to soften to the single word as well, almost dreamy. Almost.  
  
"Yusuke Urmeshi ." Yusuke said, stepping forward.  
  
"Kazuma Kuwabara." Kuwabara pointed to himself.  
  
"Kurama at your service." the youko said, bowing a little.  
  
Hiei scowled darkly but muttered in a low tone under Kurama's constant encouragement. "Hiei."  
  
"When are you going to show us your faces? Are you cowards or just plain ugly?" The orange-haired teen was getting very impatient. The youko shot him a warning glance but he didn't notice, the boy continued, "And what's with the silence deal?! Can't you guys talk? Or did Shuenn do all the talking AND thinking for ya?!" He went a little too far.  
  
The hooded figure known as Yih was going to slash a whip at Kuwabara if it weren't for the arm extended between them, it was Ying's arm, delicate, well-toned with a creamy color. Enough to make any youkai want to lick and taste it like a piece of meat on the bone of their dinner.  
  
"So you STILL won't talk to us?!" Kuwabara asked in disbelief.  
  
Ying turned to Shuenn, who nodded and blushed, then told the Reikai Tanteis. "It's direct order from Yomi-sama: We may not reveal our identities unless absolutely necessary."  
  
"Yomi's dogs." Hiei muttered under his breath.  
  
Shuenn turned to Hiei's direction," We're not which you accused us of. We are merely helping Ying. That is all. If it weren't for him, Yih, Shyang and I wouldn't even be here," he blushed slightly, "And he is forced to work for Yomi-sama." Shuenn stopped dead as Ying took a few steps forward until he was in front of the Urmeshi team, no, not the team, he was in front of Kurama.  
  
He extended a hand to Kurama's lips then caressed the lower lip softly, almost lovingly, the latter only gasped in surprise. Hiei's right hand was on the hilt of his katana, ready to cut off the youkai's head at any given time. How DARE he touch HIS fox?! Ying's delicate fingers traveled to Kurama's right cheek then it made a unfamiliar pattern to Hiei, Kuwabara and Yusuke but it made the youko's eyes went wide, he was suddenly furious in a degree they didn't know the nigen-youko could be, and he grabbed the front of Ying's cape, shouting in his face, "Where is she? What have you done with her?" he demanded. None of the Tanteis had any idea what was he talking about; on the other hand, the Shadow Fox team seemed to. Their aura showed that they were very calm, as always.  
  
Ying made another arcane pattern on Kurama's right cheek, completely ignoring the clenched fist around his cape collar (is there a collar on a cape?). The youko said though his gritted teeth, "You're on." Then it was yet another pattern made, this time the youko spoke in a language the Tanteis never heard before, it felt old, mysterious and it sounded very beautiful, but they knew it was no compliment. Kurama reluctantly released his hold on the expensive min cape as Ying lowered his arm, once again completely covered by the silver cape. He bowed a little then silently led the other members of his team away.  
  
Kurama sank to his knees, head bowed.  
  
The hallway was once again silent except the dropping of tears that echoed the unspoken words of hatred and regret.  
  
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"Kurama, diajobu ka?" Hiei whispered to the redhead who was sobbing silently; they have never seen him like this, except Hiei. The fire demon knew the youko had gone soft after the eighteen years he spent in the Nigenkai, but he never was THIS emotional; Kurama only acted this way once before and it was when he thought Hiei rejected him when he confessed his love, when the youkai loved him more than anything; he was just too scared to tell him. "Do you want to talk about it?" Talking had never been Hiei's strong point, but he would do anything and everything in his power to make his itooshi happy. Slowly, the redhead raised his head, there were tears in his eyes and tears streaming down the soft skin of his cheeks; it hurt so bad for the youkai to see him like this, sad, and vulnerable. The youko then nodded slightly and wiped away his tears with the back of his hand and took a deep breath to calm himself before speaking.  
  
"He knows where she is."  
  
"Who knows where who is?" Kuwabara echoed, both Yusuke and Hiei glared daggers at him. He immediately shut up.  
  
"Ying knows where Kiko is." He managed to say between sniffles.  
  
"Who is this Kiko girl? Your girlfriend?" Yusuke asked 'innocently.'  
  
Hiei felt hurt at the comment but remained quiet, 'Whose idea was that we keep our relationship a secret anyway?' he wondered to himself, 'Oh yeah. Mine.'  
  
Kurama shook his head slightly, "No, she's not my girlfriend; she never was and never will be."  
  
"So, is she your crush?" Kuwabara asked, Hiei really wanted to just fry those two up extra crispy, but he somehow controlled his temper. He had more important things at hand right now, like calming the whimpering Kurama. The youko shook his head again but refused to say anymore, so they dropped the subject and went back to their rooms. All the way to their hotel rooms, Hiei had his arm around the kitsune's slim waist while murmuring soothing comforts to the taller demon. In one of the smaller hallways they passed, a slender figure watched the crying redhead.  
  
She cried with him.  
  
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Yes, I put first name first in this fic even though that's not how it's done in Japan. 


	6. Chapter Five: One More Night

Thanks for the reviews you guys submitted! They keep me motivated!  
  
Special thanks to Sue, whom proofread my stuff. ^^ I'm weird, I know.  
  
One more thing before the fic, this fic is Work in Progress, which I hoped most of you guessed, so the updates are kind of slow. Okay, so it's very slow. Besides I'm working on another three fics right now. I have to think of names for them through. But don't worry, I'll be back writing this fic in no time.  
  
Disclaimers: Haven't done this in a while. No, I do not own YYH. The only thing I ever get the misfortune of owning is the plot. Don't sue. All you can from me is lots of weird ficcie idea that aren't even worth reading.  
  
Just so you know, this chapter isn't proofread, be prepared.  
  
Enough of my extremely annoying ramblings, ONTO MY WEIRD LITTLE FICCIE! (Sorry, I just HAD to say that.)  
  
Chapter Five: One More Night  
  
"You saw him." Yomi stated calmly as she found her way to an armchair oppisite of him. She smiled and answered him just as calm as he was.  
  
"You always have the best sources on things like this. Yes, I saw him, I hid in the shadows while he walked passed it with his new playmate. He was crying."  
  
"That's what I heard. He still loves you, doesn't he? You should be very happy, not many people can capture Youko Kurama's heart not to mention keeping it, and if they do, it was certainly NOT FIFTY YEARS."  
  
Kiko signed, "But he's not Youko Kurama anymore. You saw him, he looks AND acts like a human! It's disgraceful. I know he was never a generous or kind youkai, but a HUMAN! He had sunk too low. Of all the creatures for choosing, he just HAD to choose a human!" She ended up shouting and after she relaxed, she was still panting, and her aura shot up all around her like flames.  
  
"First of all, I didn't see him; in fact, I COULDN'T see him. However, I did met him, and yes, he does act like a human. And second, you have to take it easy, Kiko, anger won't get you anywhere." Yomi comforted, slightly frowning. Kiko sank back into her chair and breathed in deeply.  
  
"I guess you're right for once in your lifetime, old goat. I think I'll go to bed now," she said as she stradened herself up from the comfortable chair and walked over to Yomi. But instead of smacking the Maikai Lord on the head like the six-eared goat half-expected, she bent down and gave him a peck on the cheek, which made the pale-skined youkai blushed fiercely, the girl giggled softly at the reaction. "Good night, old goat." She said sweetly before she left his chamber. He slowly reached up to the spot which her lips had touched ever so slight only moments ago and as his lips slowly curved up to become a smile. With the goofy smile still on his face, he swiftly changed and went to bed. He was sure that he was going to have VERY sweet dreams that evening.  
  
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That night Hiei and Kurama were laying together on their shared bed, the koorime had his cheek on the youko's bare chest and his arms around the slim waist while his fingertips caressed the soft flesh of his lover's thigh teasingly and lovingly. (For those of you hentais who are wondering, it the OUTTER thigh. Sheesh. ) The spiky-haired boy had his eyes closed while his partner who had his arm around the red-eyed youkai's shoulders, however, his emerld gazes were upon the stars out the windows, the recarnated youko's expression was blank and distant as if he had lost his mother. The fire demon noticed the odd behavior and tilted his head up to look at his friend and lover, "Kurama?" he asked softly and uncertainly. Silence answered him. So he tried again, louder, "Ne, Kurama." The youko turned his gaze to his koibito, questioning the koorime with the green orbs. "Diajabou ka?"  
  
He smiled warily, "Diajabou."  
  
"Honto, koi?"  
  
"Honto," the answer came in a whisper as the emerald gaze turned back to the stars, "I was just thinking."  
  
"Of what?" The youkai lifted his head off the chest and laid on his side facing the other, elbow up, cheek in palm.  
  
"...Just...stuff."  
  
"What stuff?" Hiei was determined that he was going to get his fox's mind off whatever...or whoever that had been bothering him lately TONIGHT.  
  
"...Just...stuff...and...People..." The boy couldn't help but sobbed as he barely finished the sentence without breaking down and cry his heart out. Hiei understood immediately.  
  
"So...You're still thinking about her?" The redhead turned sharply to look at his lover, eyes wide. If it weren't for the fact that Kurama was suffering, Hiei would have laughed his head off, instead, he just smiled sadly at the youko, "It's not THAT hard to figure out. You were very obvious, fox." The green eyes relaxed a little and the shock disappeared, however, sorrow and something else that looked suspiciously like longing remained.  
  
"Gomen ne, koi." Kurama apologized quietly to the smaller demon, Hiei looked at him with questioning crimson orbs. "I shouldn't let you worry about me so much..." But he never get to finish the sentence for Hiei silenced him by placing his index finger on the youko's lips, shaking his head lightly.  
  
"Don't apologize. I WANT to help, besides, by talking about it will you feel better, go ahead and do it. I don't know how upset I'll be if somebody like Yomi hold you or Yukina hostage." For the first time since their encounter with the Shadow Fox team, Kurama truly smiled.  
  
"Arigatou."  
  
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At breakfast the next morning, Yusuke was very excited, not to mention he didn't mutter a single curse all morning, which in his case, according to Kuwabara, was a miracle. "Just three more hours until we can punch the lights out of those caped freaks, right, Kuwabara?" The latter nodded for his mouth was filled with white rice that was served as breakfast along with miso soup and some unidentified Maikai dish. "Today is the last round of the tournament and still only Shuenn took off his blasted (What? He cursed? No, 'blasted' doesn't count. Not for Yusuke anyways.) cape!" He paused to finish his miso soup, which he choked himself with and "sprayed" it all over Kuwabara. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and ignored his teammate's protests and continued talking as if nothing happened, "And what's up with the fact that Shuenn acts like a puppy around Ying anyways?" No one answered him, or listened to him for that matter; they were all occupied with something else: Kuwabara was busily drying himself, all the while muttering colorful Maikai curses which he learned from Yusuke and Hiei, though he had no idea what most of them mean. Kurama was thinking about Kiko and Hiei was watching the youko, concern written all over his face that he didn't even bothered to hide like he normally did. But on the other hand, this isn't what you would call a typical day.  
  
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He pulled up his pants and glanced over his shoulder to make sure nobody was watching while they silently got dressed; they weren't; so he resumed his task of getting dressed. What he didn't know was that someone WAS watching him; well, what he didn't know couldn't hurt him, right?  
  
Wrong.  
  
The shadow watched him with interest as it leaned on the wall on the other side of the room, he didn't noticed the shadow's gaze and it preferred to keep it that way, however, somehow he did. He turned his gaze to where the shadow's eyes are and stared intensely into them, the silence continued as they held their gaze until he turned to see the others only to find that they weren't there anymore. 'They must have got dressed went to the arena,' he thought, 'I'd better too.' He turned his slivery gaze back to the emerald orbs, and breathed lungs full of air before speaking to the shadow.  
  
"See you in the arena?" he turned to leave, but somehow the shadow had appeared in his path, standing in between him and the exit. It grabbed his shoulders with fragile-looking but strong hands and leaned to him very slowly as if afraid that he would run away if he only moved a tiny bit faster, which he probably would have if he could. Then ever so slightly, their lips touched, or rathered brushed. The shadow pulled away just far enough so he could see its victim's beautifully flushed face one last time before the slow youkai finally realized what was going on all along, it leaned to him once again, half-expecting him to pull away, but he didn't, in fact, he leaned closer as well. Their lips touched again, still light. Then it turned into a passionate kiss as the shadow lessened its grip on his shoulders and let it moved down to his slim waist, while he put his arms around its neck; their tongues entwined as he was ready to remove its clothing when a voice shouted from outside the dressing room as a fist pounded on the door, "Ying, Shuenn, are you two ready yet? That old goat is getting pretty mad! Besides, the fight is about to start!"  
  
They broke the kiss and he shouted back, "We'll be right there, just hang on!" And then he directed his next sentence to the shadow in a whisper, "Yih always pick the BEST timing, ne?" he joked. The shadow snorted quietly and let go of him to put on its min cape as he teased it, "Come on, Puppy. Let's go." He smiled as he watched the shadow's eyes turned from shock to annoyance.  
  
"If you call me that again..." it said through clenched teeth.  
  
"What are you going to do about it?" he mocked playfully, amusement dancing in his sliver eyes. The shadow leaned to his left ear and whispered something under its breath. He chuckled softly, "If that's the way you punish me..." he gave it a peck on the cheek and pulled up his own min cape, "Then I'll call you 'Puppy' for the rest of my life." He smirked then suddenly turned serious as he led them both out of the room and toward the direction of the arena, where they would either make that stupid kitsune realize the truth or kill him this very day.  
  
With no mercy.  
  
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Now, that sucked, didn't it? ^^  
  
What do you people think; should I do a Yomi/Kiko romance or a Ying/Shuenn romance? I can't do two, since I think you kind of noticed that I had too many pairings already.  
  
Review to tell me what you think!  
  
Skybluebutterfly 


	7. Chapter Six: Kuwabara Against Yih

Disclaimer: I have the greatest news ever! Last night, a cute little bird (TM) came into my dream and told me I owned YYH!! What?! What do you mean the little bird is wrong?! ¡@ 

Special thanks to Sue, who beats this fic. I love you, Sue! Also, thank you for all those who reviewed, you are really great!!

¡@

Chapter Six: Kuwabara Against Yih ¡@ 

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The smoke cleared as a figure, a female youkai to be exact, with a microphone and a set of white rabbit-like ears and tail appeared at the center of the stage. Her pink eyes sparkled as she announced though the mike in her hands. "Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, humans and youkai, welcome to the final round of the First Annual Shadow Tournament. I am Chenne, your cute host for this evening." Loud cheer came from the audience as she gestured the set of doors to her right, "In the west corner, are the last champions of our used-to-be favorite tournament, the Ankoku Bujutsukai. Let's welcome the Urmeshi team!" There were rude boos and angry shouts that sounded unpleasantly like "traitors" from the mobs of youkai as the Reikai Tanteis emerged from behind the doors. Hiei snorted lightly.

¡@

  
"Well," Kurama said sarcastically, "At least it wasn't as loud as the Ankoku Bujutsukai." 

  
The spiky-haired youkai snorted again, "That's only because they don't want the Maikai lord to cut off their 'precious' heads." The redhead chuckled but his chuckling ceased as the other shot him a death glare. 

Lover or no, when Hiei wanted to kill you... Well, he kill you. Kurama was fully aware of that.

¡@ 

The announcer once again started talking in that overly cheerful tone of hers, which sounded suspiciously like a certain blue-haired, pink-eyed ferry girl. Chenne gestured to her left, "And in the east corner, is our present day's favorite team, let's welcome TEEEEAAAAM SHADOW FOX!!" The crowd went wild as the pair of huge crimson doors opened and four caped figures walked through and into the view of the audience and their opponents. Hiei snorted once again at the audience's "foolish behavior;" Kurama's body tensed and he inched closer to the other youkai. ¡@ 

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"Please, fighters from both teams for the first match, step up to the arena, and let's get this match started!" Chenne said through the microphone. Kuwabara jumped onto the platform like the team planned as one of the caped figures calmly stepped onto the staircase which only team Shadow Fox possessed, in a swift motion the figure threw away its min cape onto the grass carpet that surrounded the fighting arena. The tanteis got a better look at the figure's features as he stepped forward. It wasn't Shuenn. The audience youkai seemed to notice as well, for most of them stopped their cheering and lowered their banners of "WE LOVE SHUENN AND SEXY HOT ^^SHADOW FOX!" 

¡@

  
The guy had blue eyes that shone like hell's flame and short blond hair with the color of the sun; he would have been considered handsome if it weren't for the huge scar on his face, starting from the right side of his forehead across his nose all the way down to his lower left cheek, and that big, ugly, superior, not to mention sick and unpleasant smile on his features. He also got cat-like ears sticking out of his golden locks, but the tail was nowhere in sight. He was dressed in a green tunic with the same shade as the grass around the fighting arena and three yellow furry belts that clung tightly to his waist. The demon studied Kuwabara from head to toe, making the nigen very uncomfortable, and his smile widened. ¡@ 

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"Why don't you take that big fat smile of yours off and stuff it down your down your disgusting throat!" Kuwabara yelled with his Special Puking Impression (TM) to the effect, there were beats of sweat rolling down his forehead already, this youkai gave him a very bad feeling about whatever that was going to happen...

¡@

  
Deep in his thoughts, the nigen had completely ignored the first sentence of the announcer, until she started the fight, but the others heard it loud and clear. "Match one: Kuwabara from the Urmeshi team and from the Shadow fox team, Yih." Chenne announced in her most serious tone, which was considered the playful tone of Yusuke, "Begin!"  
¡@ 

¡@   
'So that's him...' Hiei silently thought to himself, 'there was something familiar about him... But what...?' Unknown to the fire demon, a figure across the field was watching him with an invisible smirk on his face. ¡@ 

¡@

  
'Yes... I believe you have seen him before...' the figure mentally whispered, 'You're on the right track, Koorime, but there is still a long way to go...' 

¡@

Back to the fight. 

¡@

"This is no fun and no fair," Yih complained casually, the twisted smile never leaving his features, but his eyes told otherwise, there was something that Kuwabara couldn't quiet identify...Excitement? ...Anticipation?...... Blood thirst? But his next comment snapped the redhead out of his thoughts. "Why do I always get the worst one? It's either the dumbest or the weakest... But I guess it's just my luck, I finally fought my way to the final round of the second biggest martial arts tournament in the Maikai, and I got you... You're both the dumbest and the weakest, what's up with that?" The demon sighed as he looked up again at the youth, anticipation back to his sapphire orbs, "Might as well make the best of it, ne? Since you are the only one around when I'm not in the best of moods, I guess I'll just have to punch you until my anger disappears. Poor, poor you. Tsk tsk tsk." He sighed again as the redhead nigen's hands clenched into fists and he shot the dirtiest glare that was usually preserved only for Hiei at the other youkai, forgetting all about him being "the man" and was not supposed to shout at his opponent and be "gentlemen-like," he shouted angrily and very VERY loudy. 

¡@

"I am NOT stupid!!!" ¡@ 

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¡@ ¡@ PS I know that chapter was short, the truth is I split chapter 6 into two parts... I just thought it would be funny to see Kuwabara yell "I am not stupid!" at the end since I'm not much of a Kuwabara fan (sorry to all the Kuwabara fans!); my favorite characters are Hiei and Kurama! There IS a reason that they are the main characters in this fic, you know... Enough of my rambling, onto the next chapter! (Okay, so I _didn't _post a next chapter... Oops... Hehe.) 

Sky 


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